Humiliation Cleans a Person from Stains

The daily strengthening from our teacher, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a — "Every time a person is humiliated, it is all only blessings"

“And Hashem turned to Hevel and to his offering” (Bereishis 4:4)

Monday, 6 Av 5783 — “A person comes into the world to become Mah”

These are his holy words:

Kayin didn’t know what he was doing. He went out of his mind when Hashem did not accept his offering: “And Hashem turned to Hevel and to his offering” (Bereishis 4:4).

Because of the Shin-Ayin (370) lights—the entire avodah is to draw down the Shin-Ayin lights. Chavah had Shin-Ayin ribo (370,000) lights, which were taken from her after she ate from the Tree of Knowledge.

Now the whole avodah is “ma’aseh” (action). Wherever it says “ma’aseh,” it is Shin-Ayin of Mah. Through the Name Mah we bring back the Shin-Ayin ribo lights— a person comes into the world to be Mah (self-nullification and humility), every day to be Mah. Through the Shin-Ayin ribo lights, he must become Mah.

That is why there is the story of Rabban Gamliel, Rabbi Eliezer, and Rabbi Yehoshua who were traveling on a ship (Bava Basra 74b). Rabbi Eliezer was sleeping and Rabbi Yehoshua was awake. Rabbi Yehoshua trembled; Rabbi Eliezer woke up and asked, “Why are you trembling?” He answered, “I saw a great light in the sea!” He had seen the tail of the Leviathan.

Because the whole purpose of a person is to reach the Leviathan. Everything we sit in the sukkah for is in order to reach the Leviathan—because the feast in the future will be the feast of the Leviathan.

“Leviathan” is “levi ten” (“attach, give”). “Ten” has the gematria of 450—ten times Mah. May they merit ten times Mah—the whole purpose of a person is to be ten times Mah, to be at the peak of lowliness.

Every time a person is humiliated, it is all only blessings. A person’s true beloved ones are the ones who oppose him—they are the real beloved ones. They cleanse him from sins; they cleanse him from all kinds of stains.

Like an esrog that must be cleaned of all kinds of blemishes. We used to work in Haifa—we would clean the esrog of all the blemishes. We worked there for a man whose name I forgot; we would clean the esrog of all the blemishes. I did it for free because I had compassion on him.

There must not be any blemish at all—so the opponents cleanse a person from all the blemishes. The more people oppose him, the more they lower him, humiliate him, disgrace him, the more they cleanse him of the stains. A person comes into the world so they will cleanse him from the stains—this is why he came into the world.

Everyone opposed Mesushelach; everyone also opposed Noach. What—do you build an ark for 120 years? An ark can be built in three days; it’s only about 150 meters. Rather, for every nail Noach gave a derashah. For 120 years he gave derashos over every nail. Who cares what will be in another 120 years? Who even knows if we’ll still be alive by then? It interests no one—who knows what will be in another 120 years?

Noach was speaking to the walls—no one listened to him. The whole point is that a person must always be less than 100. All the years, less than 100, and everyone opposes him—everyone opposed Noach, and he remained one man in the world. The entire world, the whole earth, opposed him: “What flood? There is no flood. A flood will come on you!”